Movies I Watched in April

Never thought you'd see Ida Lupino dancing around in a nightie, did you?

I watched several lesser-known films this month, and was pleasantly surprised by some of them. I recorded several Melvyn Douglas films that were shown on TCM on his birthday (still haven't watched And So They Were Married which I am very excited to see. Sometimes I save those for a while). Two of the films I recorded had a different title in the credits than what was listed on the guide (why do they do that?). I only had a few re-watches this month, mostly more recent films (ones with an *).

1. Christopher Strong (1933) - Katharine Hepburn
2. Gabriel Over the White House (1933) - Walter Huston, Franchot Tone, Karen Morley
3. Dangerous Corner (1935) - Melvyn Douglas, Virginia Bruce, Conrad Nagel
4. Fast Company (1938) - Melvyn Douglas & Florence Rice
5. Juarez (1939) - Paul Muni, Bette Davis, John Garfield, Brian Aherne
6. Turnabout (1940) - Carole Landis, Adolphe Menjou, Mary Astor
7. Tales of Manhattan (1942) - Charles Boyer & Rita Hayworth, Ginger Rogers & Henry Fonda, Charles Laughton, Edward G. Robinson, Rochester
8. Mrs. Parkington (1944) - Greer Garson & Walter Pidgeon, Agnes Moorehead, Gladys Cooper 
9. Pillow to Post (1945) - Ida Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet
10. Easy to Wed (1946) - Van Johnson & Esther Williams, Lucille Ball, Keenan Wynn
11. An Innocent Affair (1947) - Fred MacMurray & Madeleine Carroll (alternate title Don't Trust Your Husband)
12. The Voice of the Turtle (1947) - Eleanor Parker & Ronald Reagan, Eve Arden (listed on guide under alternate title One for the Book)
13. *The Robe (1953) - Richard Burton & Jean Simmons, Victor Mature
14. Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) - Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Agnes Moorehead, Joseph Cotten ... yes, I watched Feud ;)
15. The Venetian Affair (1966) - Robert Vaughn, Ed Asner 
16. Barefoot in the Park (1967) - Robert Redford & Jane Fonda, Charles Boyer, Mildred Natwick
17. *Sense and Sensibility (1995) - Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant
18. *Two Weeks Notice (2002) - Sandra Bullock & Hugh Grant
19. Edge of Tomorrow (2014) - Tom Cruise & Emily Blunt
20. * The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) - Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, Hugh Grant
21. The Martian (2015) - Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Jeff Daniels 

Favorite Film of the Month: Lots of fun little films this month but I finally got to see Barefoot in the Park, which I've been wanting to watch since reading Back To Golden Day's post. It lived up to my expectations. Loved Mildred Natwick!

Least Favorite: The Venetian Affair was pretty boring, especially at the beginning, but I finished it for Ed Asner. Christopher Strong was predictable and Juarez was long but I had to watch for John Garfield (hardly in it) and Bette Davis. I also found Easy to Wed tough to get through. Nobody can replace William Powell, Myrna Loy, and Jean Harlow!!

45 Years (2015)

Genres

Drama, Romance

Director

Andrew Haigh

Country

UK

Cast

Charlotte Rampling, Tom Courtenay, Geraldine James, Dolly Wells, Max Rudd, David Sibley, Sam Alexander, Richard Cummingham, Kevin Matadeen, Hannah Chalmers

Storyline

Kate (Charlotte Rampling) and Geoff (Tom Courtenay) have been happily married for 45 years and are about to celebrate their anniversary when a letter comes bringing a shattering news that will undermine their relationship.

Opinion

Charlotte Rampling's last year's Oscar nomination brought 45 Years to my attention, but I had missed its initial release and never got back to it. These days, after watching several disappointing romances, I thought the story of an old married couple was what I was looking for. And so it was.

Although it is quite a simple film that doesn't have much of a plot, it is incredibly fascinating and engaging because of the drama going on between Kate and Geoff. It's a character-driven film, and that's its (almost) biggest strength.

45 Years is a wonderful character study from beginning to end that follows two strangers. Not only we don't get to know them and get a glimpse into their personalities, but they don't even know each other, after almost half a century spent together, they are two strangers.

Charlotte Rampling gives a spectacular, devastating performance in the role of Kate as she delivers all the character's emotions through her facial expressions and body language rather than spoken dialogue - and the camera does a wonderful job capturing that. Tom Courteney also does a great job as Geoff and he completely committed to the part.

Give it a try, the leading duo alone is worth the watch.

Sand Castle Movie Review

Sand Castle (2017)
Watch Sand Castle on Netflix

Set in 2003 Iraq during the second Gulf War, Private Matt Ocre (Nicholas Hoult) and his detail are tasked with bringing water to a village where anger and resentment fester.

Also Watched - Werckmeister Harmonies, Dark Star, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Nocturnal Animals, The Departed, Silence of the Lambs

Also watched - Werckmeister Harmonies, Dark Star, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Nocturnal Animals, The Departed, Silence of the Lambs


Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) Werckmeister harmóniák
A circus featuring a giant whale and a mysterious man named "The Prince" arrive at an isolated village and incite violence.
Main theme

Dark Star (1974)
A small crew twenty years into their mission and deep into space suddenly find everything going wrong.

The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996)
After his rescue, Edward finds himself on an island where a scientist, Dr. Moreau, turns animals into humans.

Nocturnal Animals (2016)
A wealthy art gallery owner is haunted by her ex-husband's novel, a violent thriller she interprets as a symbolic revenge tale.

The Departed (2006)
An undercover cop and a mole in the police attempt to identify each other while infiltrating an Irish gang in South Boston.

Silence of the Lambs (1991)
A young F.B.I. cadet must confide in an incarcerated and manipulative killer to receive his help on catching another serial killer who skins his victims.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Trailer

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
The Trailer

Rey continues her epic journey with Finn, Poe and Luke Skywalker in the next chapter of the saga.

Norm Macdonald: Hitler's Dog, Gossip & Trickery Netflix Comedy Special Trailer

Norm Macdonald: Hitler's Dog, Gossip & Trickery (2017)

Norm Macdonald: Hitler's Dog, Gossip & Trickery premieres on May 9

Canadian stand-up comedian, writer, producer and actor Norm Macdonald is best known for his five seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, which included anchoring Weekend Update for three years.

 

 

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)

Genres

Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Director

Rob Marshall

Country

USA

Cast

Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane, Kevin McNally, Sam Claflin, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Stephen Graham, Greg Ellis, Damian O'Hare, Oscar Jaenada, Richard Griffiths, Keith Richards, Gemma Ward, Judi Dench, Ian Mercer

Storyline

Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) embarks on a quest to find the fountain of youth only to discover that Angelica (Penelope Cruz), a woman he had seduced in the past, is the daughter of Blackbeard (Ian McShane) and that they are after the fountain too.

Opinion

Since the original trilogy was a big hit, Hollywood figured why to stop at three films. So, many years after the third entry here it is another film following the adventures of Jack Sparrow, and it's bad. Gore Verbinski left the ship right before it sank.

Just like the majority of the films in the franchise, "On Stranger Tides" suffers from a bad storyline and doesn't really have a plot. It does, however, have an interesting plot element, that being the fountain of youth, but the filmmakers weren't able to make the most of it.

Unfortunately, the tedious story they try to pass for a pirate story isn't the worst thing about this film. The characters, they are the worst thing ever happened to the entire series. I'm especially talking about Jack Sparrow who is no longer the odd hero of the story, the eccentric pirate, but he is reduced to a pathetic plot device, a very poor attempt at keeping the film together.

But I'm afraid that's not all. The new entries are also terrible. Penelope Cruz's Angelica will make you regret Keira Knightley. The Latina lover could have been a breath of fresh air but the character is annoying and one-dimensional, and her only purpose is to add more time to the film. Ian MacShane's Blackbeard didn't get a better treatment. He is the pirate all pirates fear, but there isn't a bit of backstory of back that up. Also the previous films gave me the impression Barbossa and then Davy Jones were the pirate all pirates fear.

At last but not least the action sequences, they just feel unreal, and they are not even that enjoybale. The only scene worth of being mentioned and remembered is the mermaid attack, although those magical creatures don't add anything to the story, and netiher doesn't the love story between one of them and a priest.

I just can't wait to see what they'll bring on next.